A Beginners Guide to Prepping!

If you’re just starting off in the world of prepping, welcome to the team! If you’re still contemplating whether to get on board, hopefully this will persuade you to the light. It may seem a like a daunting task to begin preparing for the worst, but if you know where to start it shouldn’t be too difficult. I have a few things I wish I’d known when I first started to share with you and get you on your way to a great start. Don’t waste your time making the same mistakes that so many of us make when starting and you won’t think prepping is such a difficult task.

The first thing to be aware of is that you won’t be prepared overnight or have exactly everything your family needs immediately. It’s going to take time and effort. The beginning prepper is like a baby. You have to walk before you can run. There are things you have to learn before you can jump completely in. If you’re trying to build up your stockpile, there are certain things to go into it you might not think of. Do your research and figure out what you need to do so you don’t waste time and money on unnecessary stuff. You’ll know what you’re getting yourself into and not think you can do it all in one day. You also won’t spend thousands of dollars on impulse buys.

Along with not thinking you can do it all in one night, you need to prioritize what you do. Get the most important things out of the way first, so if something were to happen tomorrow, you would have what you need to survive. You should put why you’re preparing first. Usually we’re preparing because we want to help others close to us survive. Whatever your reason, make that the focus, not what emergency to prepare for. You never know what is coming, so you should be ready for everything that could happen and not just one specific catastrophe.

Money might be a big worry for those contemplating beginning to prep and many of us make the mistake of spending far too much money when we start out. Prepping doesn’t have to be very expensive. There are tons of DIY options and things you can learn to do to avoid the greed of commercial survival stores. Another big mistake we make with money is blowing it all in the first month. If you spend a little bit of money each day, or even each week, you’ll be just as prepared as those who spend thousands of dollars in just a few days. There’s no reason why you should buy everything at once, so slowly stock up on the supplies you need as is fit for your budget.

One of the biggest mistakes all of us who have been prepping for a while make is not having enough water. We don’t think about water running out or being something we need to stock up on. Stocking up on water doesn’t have to mean buying hundreds of cases of water bottles. You can collect water on your own and store it in jugs or barrels. Milk jugs aren’t the best way to store water though. The plastic easily breaks down over time and it’s never possible to get all the milk out so there is a possibility your water could get infected with bacterias from the leftover milk. Getting everyone sick from some water is the last thing you need in the middle of an emergency.

Another common mistake among preppers is letting everyone know that you are prepping. It’s okay to tell a few close friends and family members so you have someone to team up with and help you in times of disaster, but you don’t want everyone to know. Your family should definitely be in the know so everyone is on the same page come disaster time and there isn’t as much chaos in the house. Not everyone needs to know what your bug out plan is or where you store all your supplies. This could easily backfire in a state of emergency when everyone is panicked and resorts to stealing and destroying things.

The most useful and prepared survivalist knows all kinds of skills to get them through any situation. You should learn skills like how to hunt and shoot, build fires and shelters different ways, and medical treatment. BLS certification is a great course to learn the basics of medical treatment, such as how to administer oxygen, splint broken or dislocated bones, and stop excessive bleeding. There are plenty of other skills that will come in handy when you’re in survival mode. Here is a list of skills you might consider learning in order to be completely prepared. Some of them are even good skills to trade with after a disaster.

Prepping isn’t something that has to be scary or take a lot of work. If you have the knowledge and know what you are preparing for, you won’t make the same mistakes a lot of us make and you’ll be your way to being an advanced prepper in no time.

Article contributed by Ryan Thompson

“Ryan is an emergency preparedness blogger who is passionate about helping others prepare for the worst. Follow Ryan on Twitter, @ryan_thompson03, for more emergency preparedness tips.”